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Tom's Tech Tips

Tom’s Tuesday Tech Tip: Laptop Computer Recommendations for Legal Nurse Consultants

Last week I talked about desktop computer specs and promised to tell the Certified Legal Nurse Consultants the true Hollywood story of my new laptop purchase. As you can guess, I was picturing a sleek ultrabook. Something 1/8” thick, faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a Cray® XE6 and weighing less than a change of mind. Turns out I ended up with a 11”x19”x 1 ¾”, 7 lb. “desktop replacement.” I don’t have a problem with that because when I’m saving the free world on a daily basis, I need the computing power (You’re still here aren’t you?).

But, what sort of laptop do my CLNC® amigos require? First, let me give you the same advice I gave last week: Whether you buy a Mac® or a Windows® box isn’t important anymore. What’s important is that you have Microsoft® Office for Mac and a learning source to help train you to use your new computer.

Let’s get started with some specs for the mobile Certified Legal Nurse Consultant. First, any notebook from Dell, Fujitsu®, HP, Lenovo® or Asus® will do the trick.

  • Intel® 2nd or 3rd Generation Core™ i-series processor, 3.2 GHz or faster.
  • 8 GB or more of DDR3 RAM up to as much as you can afford.
  • A 64 bit version of Windows 7 Home Premium is required to use more than 4 GB of RAM. You may have to buy Windows 8 with downgrade rights to get Win7 (go for it).
  • 500 GB or larger hard drive running @ 7,200 RPM or faster.
  • Fast rewritable DVD+R dual-layer drive (non-Blu-Ray) or DVD/CD-RW drive.
  • 15″ or larger screen.
  • Built-in 10/100-Mbps Ethernet adapter (for networking capability or a broadband connection).
  • 802.11b/g/n wireless solution or card.
  • Integrated sound card.
  • Built-in web cam, microphone and speakers.
  • Integrated 3D-capable graphics or ATI or nVidia card – 128 MB or more.
  • Four or more USB ports.
  • Additional battery.
  • Optional docking station or port-replicator with additional monitor(s), mouse and keyboard.
  • 2-3-year on-site service warranty.

Mac notebooks are more expensive but have that high “wow” factor. For you, since it’s form before price, you’ll want a minimum of a 15” MacBook Pro® and if you have any spare money, consider upgrading to the Retina display.

  • 2.6GHz Quad-core Intel Core i7, NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M with 1GB GDDR5 memory.
  • 8GB 1600MHz DDR3 SDRAM – 2x4GB RAM.
  • 750GB Serial ATA Drive @ 5400 rpm.
  • SuperDrive 8x (DVD±R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW).
  • Mac OS X Mountain Lion.
  • iWork preinstalled.
  • Microsoft® Office for Mac.
  • Built-in 10/100/1000BASE-T Gigabit Ethernet.
  • 802.11n wireless solution or card (a/b/g compatible).
  • AppleCare Protection Plan.

Again. We now live in a world where your computing preference doesn’t matter. Just be sure you learn how to use what you buy.

Keep on techin’,

Tom

P.S. Comment and share whether you prefer a desktop or laptop.

P.P.S. Disclaimer: These recommendations are guidelines only. LegalNurse.com does not specifically endorse or recommend any particular equipment or manufacturer. We do not guarantee any product or service offered by any vendor mentioned.

3 thoughts on “Tom’s Tuesday Tech Tip: Laptop Computer Recommendations for Legal Nurse Consultants

  1. After getting ‘burned’ when locally buying a Windows 7 Lenovo ThinkPad (a ‘lemon’), I went to Best Buy and purchased an expensive Sony Viao Windows 8 (aka HATE) touchscreen, which was loaded! Unfortunately, after 2 weeks I was forced to return this PC, due to the OS being completely frustrating to use. It was fine for games and fun, but for the ‘business’ side, it was totally useless! It took Microsoft 3 hours to install the Word suite! Everything took hours to do, it seemed.
    I went back to Best Buy to purchase a Windows 7 PC, but they only had 6 of them, and they were all over $2,700! I went straight to the MacBooks! I bought a Macbook Pro 15 inch with Retina display for less than those. The learning curve was short-maybe since I’m very good with computers or maybe because Macs are intuitive? Macs do everything for you! I highly recommend a Mac-especially if you cannot get a Windows 7 PC! They basically pay for themselves in ease of use.

  2. I have a question about your recommendations for Mac. Why do you recommend iWord along with Microsoft Word Suite? I thought iWord was pretty much the same as Microsoft Word. If not, could you please explain the differences for me, as I can easily get iWord, and could use all the extra help I can get in the word processing department? LOL! On the other hand, I definitely do not want to duplicate something I already have (Word) and take up more space on my HD. TYVM, Tom. BTW-I absolutely love reading ‘Tom’s Tech Tips’! I have spent whole afternoons just reading your blog entries! Such a learning experience! When I first began learning about PCs, you were a life saver!(Before passing my CLNC® certification exam, I was often my neighborhood’s IT go-to person!) Thank you so much for sharing your vast knowledge. 🙂

  3. Marguerite – you only need one word processing suite so I would pick whichever of the two you are most comfortable with. Thanks for being a loyal reader!
    Tom

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*The opinions and statements made by Vickie Milazzo, the founder of Medical-Legal Consulting Institute, Inc. are based on her experiences and expertise, should not be applied beyond the specific context provided, and do not guaranty or project actual results. Vickie Milazzo is no longer involved in the operations or management of the business, but is involved as an independent education consultant.

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